Sensex opens by 57 points higher

Mumbai:The Sensex gained over 57 points in opening trade on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) today on selective buying by cautious investors in the absence of any cues from other Asian markets.

The 30-share index of the BSE, which rose by 68.40 points in yesterday`s volatile session, moved up by 57.32 points, or 0.31 per cent, to 18,147.94 today, with metal, IT and banking stocks leading the rise.

In a similar fashion, the broad-based National Stock Exchange Nifty index gained 10.35 points, or 0.19 per cent, to 5,442.35 points.

Brokers said buying by funds, though selective, helped the Sensex open in positive terrain. However, in the absence of cues from other Asian markets, which are closed on account of a public holiday to mark the Lunar New Year, participants adopted a cautious approach.

However, Japan`s Nikkei was open for trade and was marginally down in the early part of the session. The US Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.02 per cent higher in yesterday`s trade